PEOPLE become refugees because their human rights are at grave risk. They sever the link with their own state and seek the protection of another because of persecution by their own governments. If these governments protected their citizens, millions of women, men and children would not have to gamble on an uncertain future in a foreign land.
Many asylum seekers arrive in Ireland without valid travel documents or visas, but this is because they do not have the choice. Some have fled because of war or serious violations of their basic human rights and with little time to put their house in order. Some have had their travel documents seized by security forces. When you are terrorised you look for the first available chance to escape the terror.
When asylum seekers arrive in Ireland we face new fears and new pain. Having left behind families and friends, home, culture and language, we find ourselves trapped in a bureaucratic logjam. Completely isolated, asylum seekers are faced with an uncertain future. Yet all we ask of the state is the protection denied us in our own countries.
Once admitted to the Irish procedure, we must prepare and make our submissions on our own, without formal guidance. As many of us do not have English, this is indeed a daunting task. Asylum seekers are not allowed to work and must exist on government handouts while the authorities examine our claims. This is especially tough for non-European refugees because it is culturally alien to us to accept alms when we are able and willing to fend for ourselves.
The rise of racism and xenophobia in Ireland is another major problem we have to face. There have been over 55 reported cases of racial attacks, many of them against women. The media must take some of the blame for this frightening state of affairs and politicians some more for not speaking out against it.
That minority group of selfserving, biased, racist and morally deficient journalists has promoted systematic discrimination, ridicule and prejudice against refugees and asylum seekers. It is a bitter irony that some refugees who were journalists in their home countries, who stood up against censorship, should now be the victims of this journalistic excess.
Not everyone has a bad experience, of course. Many of us have been warmly welcomed by ordinary Irish people who have taken the cause of refugees and asylum seekers into their hearts. Indeed, it is the wish of some refugees to settle in Ireland, given the chance, for they can contribute to Irish society and make a new life for themselves. But the majority do not wish to remain longer than is necessary. They want to go back home to their families and friends. They want democracy, peace and stability in their homeland and, more than anything, they want their lives back.